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Poetry | Music | Events & Exhibitions | Carl Hancock Rux | Credits | Links

One hundred fifty years ago, Walt Whitman published the first edition of Leaves of Grass, a collection of twelve poems that shattered existing notions of poetry and broke all existing conventions in terms of subject matter, language, and style. During Victorian times, Whitman broke taboos: he wrote about slaves, prisoners, prostitutes, sexuality, his love for men, and his vision for a utopian America.

"Walt Whitman: Song of Myself” explores how a 36-year old freelance journalist and part-time house-builder living in Brooklyn created his outrageous, groundbreaking work that irrevocably altered the development of poetry—and literature—that followed. One of the nation’s first media hounds, he styled his image and his persona throughout his lifetime in search of fame and the broadest possible audience. He even hoped to heal a divided nation with this poetry, a lofty goal he would not reach. Despite never reaching a mass public during Whitman’s lifetime, his work’s tremendous impact is being felt a century and a half later.

Program guests include:

		Composer John Adams, who has set Whitman's elegiac poem "The Wound-Dresser" to music and finds power in Whitman's "great simplicity and directness and sincerity."
		Novelist Michael Cunningham, who recently included Whitman in his novel Specimen Days.
		Puerto Rican poet Martín Espada, hailed by some as a contemporary Walt Whitman, who says that Whitman's poetry "has found its way into the air we breathe."
		Choreographer Bill T. Jones, who appreciates Whitman's open embrace of the body as well as the mind and says he feels "in some ways a descendent of Walt Whitman."
		Whitman scholar Karen Karbiener, who edited the Barnes & Noble edition of Leaves of Grass and recently co-curated the South Street Seaport's exhibition, "Walt Whitman and the Promise of Democracy, 1855-2005" (on display until December 31st).
		Writer Phillip Lopate, who explains how the poet gave permission for him and others to "go for broke."

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All poetry readings from "Leaves of Grass"

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Music Excerpts:

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Events and Exhibitions:

“Leaves of Grass at 150”
92nd Street Y
December 12
On December 12, Harold Bloom, Michael Cunningham and J.D. McClatchy will participate in a celebration of Whitman's poetry. Cunningham just based his new book of three novellas, Fine Specimen, on Whitman. Live music and historical recordings of Whitman's poems will be included.
For more information, visit www.92y.org

“Revising Himself: Walt Whitman and Leaves of Grass”
Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Southwest Gallery, 2nd Floor
Through December 2, 2005 and available online
A special installation within the American Treasures exhibition celebrates 150 years of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass. This exhibition traces the different occupations and preparations that led Whitman to become the author of that seminal work, as well as his subsequent evolution as a poet. Displayed are selected Whitman manuscript drafts and notes for poems written across the stages of his career. This exhibition is free and open to the public. No reservations are needed.
For more information, visit www.loc.gov or view this exhibition online

"Walt Whitman and the Promise of Democracy, 1855-2005"
South Street Seaport Museum, New York City
Through December 2005
Timed to the 150th anniversary of the publication of Leaves of Grass in 1855, this exhibit includes a timeline, photographs of Whitman, a copy of the first edition of Leaves of Grass, and six main sections that depict Whitman's "passionate democracy."
For more information, visit www.southstseaport.org

"'I Am With You': Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass (1855-2005)”
New York Public Library
Through January 6, 2006
Featuring first and rare editions of Leaves of Grass, manuscript drafts, books, and trial proofs annotated in the poet's hand. Also includes manuscripts and rare books of Whitman's literary heirs, Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and others.
For more information, visit www.nypl.org

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Carl Hancock Rux is a multi-disciplinary writer selected by the New York Times Magazine as "One of Thirty Artists Under The Age of Thirty Most Likely To Influence Culture Over The Next Thirty Years" (1994). Rux, a New York City Foster Care alumnus and Columbia University graduate, is the author of the critically-acclaimed novel, Asphalt, the Village Voice Literary prize-winning collection of poetry, Pagan Operetta, and the OBIE award-winning play, Talk.

"Walt Whitman: Song of Myself" was produced by Curtis Fox. Julie Subrin was the associate producer, and the assistant producer was James Murdock. Elena Park was editor and executive producer.

The readers were Mike Daisey, Paul Giammatti, Bob Holman, Bill T. Jones, Christina Kirk, Jonathan Meyers, Mary Myers, Michael Stuhlbarg, Joao do Souza and Jeffery Wright.

Special thanks to Isaiah Sheffer and Symphony Space, Lanny Meyers, Karen Koonrad, Karen Karbiener, Richard Tayson, Chyrstalline Wright. Production support from Ed Haber, Dean Cappello, George Preston, Chris Bannon, and Howard Carolan.

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Links:
» NYU Professor Karen Karbiener discusses Walt Whitman on Soundcheck
» WNYC's Galway Kinnell reads Walt Whitman "To The States"
» Walt Whitman's Notebooks from the Library of Congress
» The Whitman Project celebrating the 150th Anniversary of Leaves of Grass
» Walt Whitman's Birthplace in Long Island, New York
» Recording of Whitman's voice from the Whitman Archive

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